Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Hopatcong

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Hopatcong NJPhoto: Forrest R. Whitesides / Culturejam23 at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
C−History
History · Hopatcong

Hopatcong dates to 1898

More historic than 22% of U.S. towns · #436 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Most of Hopatcong was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1964. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1900.

1898founded
0on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
11old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Hopatcong’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Hopatcong began

When was Hopatcong founded?

1898

Hopatcong dates its founding to 1898 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 75 in 19002020 census: 14,362128 years

How historic is Hopatcong?

C−

More historic than 22% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1918.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Hopatcong’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hopatcong is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #436 of 468 in New Jersey. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hopatcong’s overall grade.
Founding era1898, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19407.0% of homes (±2.1) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%C+National RegisterNo listings counted · typical NJ town 3.7 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 22%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 7%

New Jersey towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New Jersey town has 3.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hopatcong’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (12% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C. The pre-1940 share (±2.1 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1898.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Hopatcong’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

On the map since 18888 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1995. Watch Hopatcong change.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Hopatcong, and 7 old place names are still on the map.Old housesHalf of Hopatcong’s homes were built before 1964.
★ What stands out · On the map

Hopatcong on the map, 1888 to 1995

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Hopatcong. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Hopatcong on the 1888 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1894 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1905 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1943 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1954 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1970 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1981 USGS mapHopatcong on the 1995 USGS map1888Lake Hopatcong sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Hopatcong.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Hopatcong’s post office has been open since 1918. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hopatcong
1918–today
Sperry Sings
1922–1966
Byram Cove
1928–1957
Glasser
1933–today
19101970today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Bonaparte LandingByram CoveHopatcong HeightsHopatcong HillsNorthwoodPoint PleasantSperry Springs
Gone or out of use
Lake Hopatcong Quarrymine

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Hopatcong came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hopatcong.

Read it all →

The town of Hopatcong has a rich history, given its relationship with New York City. It borders Lake Hopatcong, a partially man-made lake that is now a source of much recreation and desirable real estate, and is the biggest lake in New Jersey. The community, 40 miles (64 km) west of New York City, began as a summer getaway for the wealthy in NYC who primarily sought access to the lake. An amusement park, called "Bertrand's Island", sprang up and was accessible via the lake, trolley or by car through Mount Arlington. The construction of Interstate 80, a highway that stretches from Teaneck, New Jersey, all the way across the country to San Francisco, California, triggered rapid growth in New York City's suburbs and led to Hopatcong becoming a permanent residential community.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Hopatcong, 1888 to 1978

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1890In the archiveThe Lake from the club
  4. 1898
    FoundingHopatcong is established
  5. 20th century
  6. 1900In the archiveLake Hopatcong, N.J
  7. 1910In the archiveLake Hopatcong Yacht Club dock
  8. 1918Post officeThe Hopatcong post office opens
  9. 1922Post officeThe Sperry Sings post office opens
  10. 1928Post officeThe Byram Cove post office opens
  11. 1957Post officeThe Byram Cove post office closes
  12. 1966Post officeThe Sperry Sings post office closes
  13. 1978Born hereJoe Hewitt is born here
By decade

Hopatcong, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1910s11 items
The Lake from the club1890The Lake from the clubLake Hopatcong, N.J1900Lake Hopatcong, N.J51744.LB#001--Property to be acquired of Ralph H. Carey--Near Hopatcong, NJ [1908.05.02]190851744.LB#001--Property to be acquired of Ralph H. Car…Lake Hopatcong Yacht Club dock1910Lake Hopatcong Yacht Club dockLake Hopatcong Yacht Club dock1910Lake Hopatcong Yacht Club dockLake Hopatcong Yacht Club dock1910Lake Hopatcong Yacht Club dock"The Isles", Lake Hopatcong1910"The Isles", Lake HopatcongSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00021917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00031917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00051917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00061917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…Map
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today1 recent
Hopatcong nj2005Hopatcong nj
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

The Lake from the club
Retake this viewThe Lake from the club, 1890

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Hopatcong’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Hopatcong, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 15,888

Between 75 and 15,888 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Hopatcong’s Wikipedia page.

Help out

Finish Hopatcong’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewThe Lake from the club: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Byram Township1 historic placeA−Landing1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRoxbury Township8 historic placesALake HopatcongIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townJefferson Township2 historic placesBMount Arlington1 historic placeB−Byram CenterIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townStanhope1 historic placeB+

Questions about Hopatcong’s history

What year was Hopatcong founded?

In 1898, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Hopatcong’s post office opened in 1918, and the census of 1900 counted 75 people here.

How does Hopatcong rank for history?

Hopatcong is more historic than 22% of U.S. towns, #436 of 468 in New Jersey. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Hopatcong?

7% of Hopatcong’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.1 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1964.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.